QUADRIGA INITIATIVE
CRYPTO WATCHDOG & FRAUD RECOVERY PLATFORM
A COMMUNITY-BASED, NOT-FOR-PROFIT
UNKNOWN
MARCH 2024
GLOBAL
COINTELEGRAPH
DESCRIPTION OF EVENTS
Founded in 2013, Cointelegraph is a privately held company specializing in cryptocurrency, blockchain, and fintech news. Cointelegraph is a leading independent digital media outlet. It delivers daily news, in-depth analysis, and educational content across various topics, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, decentralized finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and Web3. The platform is recognized for its comprehensive coverage, featuring expert opinions, price charts, and reports on the social impact of digital currencies.
Headquartered in the United States, Cointelegraph has expanded its presence internationally, with teams in over 30 countries. The company publishes more than 1,000 articles monthly and offers a range of resources, such as a mobile app, video content, and educational materials like "Cryptopedia" . Despite its prominence, Cointelegraph has faced criticism over the years for occasional inaccuracies and sensational headlines, which have led to discussions about its editorial practices within the crypto community.
In addition to its U.S. headquarters, Cointelegraph has expanded its global presence with offices in various countries, including China, Japan, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates.
Despite its prominence, Cointelegraph has faced criticism over the years for occasional inaccuracies and sensational headlines, which have led to discussions about its editorial practices within the crypto community.
This breach may indicate weaknesses in the account’s access controls, security monitoring, or incident response procedures, which allowed the attacker to maintain control long enough to disseminate deceptive content before the account was secured.
The exploit involved unauthorized access to Cointelegraph’s official X/Twitter account, likely achieved through credential compromise or social engineering techniques targeting account management controls. Once the attacker gained access, they were able to bypass multi-factor authentication (if enabled) or exploit session management vulnerabilities to post malicious tweets. These tweets included fraudulent announcements promoting a fake cryptocurrency token ($TELEGRAPH). The attack leveraged the trusted status of the verified account to spread misinformation and potentially execute phishing or scam operations.
Contract Address $TELEGRAM: 2Lj7b4hCvv7fUsx56k2M7r8UKYsDWJGCAwCg7azdNaeV
Contract Address $PACKY: mw3LR155fQJiRKjm3oeXQN8NB7BoF2BBbC9s1RjmDbN
There are limited specific details about the amount lost.
The community reacted swiftly and vocally to the Cointelegraph X/Twitter account compromise. Influencers and media outlets such as BSCNews, BSCN Headlines, and The Cryptonomist France quickly confirmed the hack, urging followers to stay cautious. Users like @cuongtran2024 and @pcaversaccio warned others not to engage with the malicious posts, particularly those involving suspicious Solana wallet addresses.
Cointelegraph reportedly regained control of its account shortly thereafter. No official post-mortem or restitution plan has been issued by Cointelegraph as of now.
There does not appear to be any attempt to assist any users who may have been affected by the incident.
The incident highlights a growing trend of social engineering in crypto-related cyberattacks, emphasizing the urgent need for vigilance, two-factor authentication, and skepticism toward unexpected links—even from trusted sources.
Cointelegraph is a leading independent digital media outlet specializing in cryptocurrency, blockchain, and fintech news. On March 23, 2024, its official X/Twitter account was compromised—likely via credential theft or social engineering—to promote fake Solana-based tokens ($TELEGRAPH and $PACKY). The attack leveraged the outlet’s trusted status to spread scam content before the account was swiftly recovered, though no public restitution or post-mortem has been provided.
Tran Cuong - "#CoinTelegraph got hacked, be careful guys :))" - Twitter/X (Jun 9)
BSCNews - "Today, Sunday 23rd March, the official account of blockchain media company, @Cointelegraph, suffered what appears to have been a compromise by a malicious actor." - Twitter/X (Jun 9)
BSCN Headlines - "JUST IN: OFFICIAL @COINTELEGRAPH X/TWITTER ACCOUNT COMPROMISED" - Twitter/X (Jun 9)
pcaversaccio - "Cointelegraph hacked on X / Twitter. Please don't interact with any of the Solana addresses!" - Twitter/X (Jun 9)
TELEGRAPH Token Address - SolScan (Jun 9)
Telegraph Token Minting - SolScan (Jun 9)
The Cryptonomist France - "JUST IN: Cointelegraph's Twitter account hacked" - Twitter/X (Jun 9)
PACKY Token - SolScan (Jun 9)
Minting Initial 1,000,000,000 PACKY - SolScan (Jun 9)
PACKY Token Moved To Raydium - SolScan (Jun 9)
@EarningEngine Twitter (Jun 9)
@ApkJnr Twitter (Jun 9)
@Ricardo__Gordon Twitter (Jun 9)
@its_Adityya Twitter (Jun 9)
@CryptoExptAvni Twitter (Jun 9)
@somaxbt Twitter (Jun 9)
SomaXBT - "Update: @Cointelegraph recovered account successfully" - Twitter/X (Jun 9)
@ibiraw Twitter (Jun 9)
@EvanLuthra Twitter (Jun 9)
@ninjanewsx Twitter (Jun 9)
@YazanXBT Twitter (Jun 9)
@wiseadvicesumit Twitter (Jun 9)
@SOU_BTC Twitter (Jun 9)
@CryptoKingKeyur Twitter (Jun 9)
@KoalaAIvip Twitter (Jun 9)
About CoinTelegraph (Jun 9)
CoinTelegraph LinkedIn (Jun 9)
Cointelegraph Announces Chinese HQ, Bolstering Its International Expansion - CoinTelegraph (Jun 9)
CoinTelegraph Office Locations - Employbl (Jun 9)
Cointelegraph Company Profile 2024 - Pitchbook (Jun 9)
Cointelegraph Overview - SignalHire Company Profile (Jun 9)
Cointelegraph: Contact Information, Journalists, and Overview - Muckrack (Jun 9)
Another example why not to trust Cointelegraph - CryptoCurrency Reddit (Jun 9)
